Newcastle Beat West Ham 3-1 at St James’ Park, Leaving Hammers Three Points From Safety

Newcastle United beat West Ham United 3-1 at St James’ Park on Sunday, with Nick Woltemade scoring in the 15th minute and William Osula adding a second before Taty Castellanos reduced the deficit.

“Crestfallen goalscorer Valentin Castellanos buried his face in his shirt, but West Ham players had nowhere to hide as a furious away end turned at St James' Park”

BBC

The result left West Ham three points from safety in 18th place with just one of their 38 games still to play, and it set up a scenario where Tottenham Hotspur visit Chelsea on Tuesday with a chance to condemn the Hammers to the Championship.

BBC

Nuno Espirito Santo said, “What we did was not enough for us in the fight that we have,” after West Ham’s early concession and a late rally that fell short.

Eddie Howe said of Osula, “He’s really growing and improving all the time,” as Newcastle controlled the start and then punished West Ham’s errors to secure the win.

Opta Analyst put the match’s turning point in numbers, noting West Ham’s survival hopes were “almost gone” with a 6.2% chance of staying up after the defeat.

Nuno Espirito Santo refused to blame his players in his post-match press conference, telling Sky Sports, “No, not about that. Let’s take a look at the game. We started poorly and were soft,” after the 3-1 loss.

Mateus Fernandes said, “The first 20 minutes was so painful for us,” adding that West Ham “trained all week to do one thing and we arrived here and didn’t do it,” as supporters chanted “you’re not fit to wear the shirt” during the defeat.

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Flashscore described how VAR took a “reasonably long look” at a potential handball by Tomáš Souček, and said West Ham were behind before the quarter-hour mark after Nick Woltemade steered in a Harvey Barnes cross.

The Times reported Jarrod Bowen’s reaction that “Things obviously don’t look great,” while also quoting Nuno Espirito Santo saying, “Maybe we didn’t prepare the players well enough,” as West Ham’s posture and intensity were questioned.

Sports Illustrated framed the night around a “significant VAR call in Premier League history,” and said West Ham’s opening 20 minutes on Tyneside left them chasing an unlikely comeback at St James’ Park.

After Newcastle’s 3-1 win, Tottenham’s path to safety hinged on results at Stamford Bridge, with multiple outlets saying a draw would be enough due to goal difference, and that West Ham’s survival would require help plus a win over Leeds.

“In an otherwise cagey opening, VAR took a reasonably long look at a potential handball in the box by Tomáš Souček, which would have been doubly controversial after the technology sided against West Ham last time out versus Arsenal”

Flashscore

The Herald wrote that defeat means the Hammers will be relegated on Tuesday if Tottenham win at Chelsea, while a draw would effectively send them down because of their significantly inferior goal difference.

Football London said Tottenham are two points clear of the Premier League relegation zone and that Spurs need just a draw from their final two games, with West Ham hosting Leeds on the final day.

The West Ham United match report said the club is now “relying on Tottenham Hotspur losing their final two matches” and that even then it “need[s] to defeat Leeds United at London Stadium next Sunday.”

Opta Analyst quantified the stakes by stating West Ham were “two points from safety” after the defeat and that Spurs now need only a point from their final two matches to condemn the Hammers to relegation.